Aaron McGruder

(b. 29 May 1974, USA)

Aaron McGruder graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Afro-American studies with a concentration in Social and Cultural Analysis. He went on to create comics, and came up with the 'The Boondocks', which he first published on Internet. The comic, about a group of African-American city kids adjusting to life in white suburbia, was first printed in 1997 in a student newspaper. Soon it became very popular and was picked up by magazine The Source. Through his work, Aaron seeks to provoke thought, help improve the state of racial discourse and expand the types of humor found on comics pages. Aaron McGruder lives in Los Angeles, where he worked on his comic until 26 March 2006, as well as the animated television version.